On Feb. 21, 2022, some 296 days after the 2021 Kentucky Derby, Medina Spirit has been disqualified from his win by Kentucky Horse Racing Commission stewards.
The ruling was published roughly a week after attorneys for Medina Spirit trainer Bob Baffert said they appeared at a stewards' hearing to discuss the horse's positive test for betamethasone after that race.
“After a formal hearing before the board of stewards, Robert A. Baffert is hereby suspended 90 days, March 8, 2022 through June 5, 2022 (inclusive) and fined seven thousand five hundred dollars,” the ruling read. “Medina Spirit is disqualified and all purse money forfeited. Pari-mutuel wagering is not affected by this ruling.”
The ruling indicated that the overage was Baffert's fourth medication violation in 365 days in any racing jurisdiction, which could have influenced the stewards' choice of penalties dealt to him.
Suspensions are typically delayed, or “stayed” if a licensee is in the appeals process.
Medina Spirit's betamethasone overage has been a constant source of discussion and speculation since Baffert announced the week after the race that he had been notified the horse had tested positive for the corticosteroid. That test result would later be confirmed via a split sample test. In the weeks and months that followed, attorneys for Baffert fenced with the KHRC regarding their right to conduct further testing on the remainder of the biological samples leftover from the primary and split sample testing process in an effort to find the source of the substance. In December, Baffert's legal team announced that additional testing conducted by Dr. George Maylin, head of New York's Equine Drug Testing Program, suggested the betamethasone did not come from the injectable version of the drug but from a topical application of the skin ointment Otomax.
Otomax is a topical drug formulated to assist with ear infections in dogs. Baffert asserts his team was using the ointment to combat a skin infection on the horse's hindquarters in the weeks leading up to the Kentucky Derby.
Medina Spirit, owned by Zedan Racing, finished third in the Preakness, then went on to win the Shared Belief Stakes and the G1 Awesome Again. He was second in the G1 Breeders' Cup Classic. In early December, Medina Spirit collapsed and died after completing a workout at Santa Anita Park. A necropsy report released on Feb. 11 indicated a conclusive cause of death could not be determined, though veterinary experts said it was possible the horse died due to a cardiac event.
This is a breaking news story and more information will be added as it becomes available.
The post Medina Spirit Disqualified From 2021 Kentucky Derby Win, Baffert Given 90-Day Suspension appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
